


Kittens and Fluff

by nightlight9



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, Alternate Universe - Office, Derek Hale is a Fluff, Just Add Kittens, M/M, Meet-Cute, Sterek Week 2017
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-29
Updated: 2017-10-29
Packaged: 2019-01-25 19:01:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,866
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12538976
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nightlight9/pseuds/nightlight9
Summary: Stiles finds a box of kittens on his way to work. A storm seems to be brewing, so he does the only logical thing he can think of to help the small creatures: bring them to the office. It should be fine, he has a cubical all to himself. But then three of the cats go missing, and oh God, Derek Hale from marketing is going to have his head.





	Kittens and Fluff

**Author's Note:**

> Because Derek and kittens is a thing that had to happen

“What do you mean you lost the kittens?”

Stiles reaches out and punches his best friend in the arm before sticking his head over the cubicle wall to see if any of their coworkers heard Scott’s announcement. “Dude, use your indoor voice.” Convinced no one is paying them any mind, he slouches back into his seat and glances at the empty cardboard box under his desk dejectedly. “I didn’t mean to-. Look, I hadn't had time to eat breakfast this morning, so I ran down to the break room for a snack, and when I got back they were gone.”

Scott scrubs a hand through his hair, and Stiles decides that it isn’t fair that he's so worked up about it. After all, Scott’s not the one who misplaced three small kittens in their very large workplace. The Beacon, one of the biggest up and coming publishing corporations, doesn’t necessarily have a policy about animals on campus. But that doesn’t mean that the CEO’s will be pleased that Stiles brought a box of stray kittens into the building without asking permission first. And then lost said kittens.

“Why would you think it was okay to leave five cats alone unsupervised while you went to find food! You should have called me in to watch them!

Stiles sighs and holds up his fingers. “Okay, first, I didn’t lose all five of them. Danny took Boots, and Allison came and picked up Francis. Second, I was only gone for five minutes max, and that’s only because Greenberg stopped to talk to me. You know how hard it is to escape that guy! And third, they were asleep. I didn’t think they were going to make a daring escape while I was gone!”

Shaking his head, Scott bends down to look under Stiles’ desk for the fourth time in five minutes. “Yeah, I know. It’s just, what are we going to-.” Before he can finish his question, Stiles’ computer pings with an email alert. Freezing at the noise, they stare at each other until the computer pings again.

Stiles gulps, fingers twitches towards his keyboard. “Shit,” he mutters when he catches the sender’s name. “I’m so dead.”

Scott stands up to peer at the screen, clutching at Stiles’ shoulder as if that was enough to protect him from being fired. 

If there is one thing that they both have learned during their nine months at the company, it is that no one messes with the Marketing manager, Derek Hale. They’ve both heard horror stories about how he’s made interns cry, and even though neither of them have met the CEO’s son, they know that they never want to do anything to make him mad. Stiles always thought that they were lucky they didn’t work in his department, thought they could continue to blissfully work under ‘Call me Coach’ Finstock without worrying about making Derek mad. And yet.

“What does it say,” Scott asks, breathing heavy. Stiles shudders a little before clicking the email icon. The message is short and clear: _Mr. Stilinski, please come up to my office._ The second email is just as short, and carries a heavy weight: _As soon as possible please._

The both stare at in in horror, and then Scott shakes his head and agrees, “You’re so dead.”

Stiles blinks at the email, then forces a smile up at his friend. “What are the chances Derek just wants to congratulate me on my hard work?”

Scott snorts. “Yeah, the head of a different department is calling you to his office on the day you lose three kittens in the building to congratulate you on your work.”

Pushing at his shoulder, Stiles stands up and glares at his friend. “You don’t know, man.” Faking bravado, Stiles straightens his shoulders and nods. “Okay, here goes nothing.”

Scott pats his back then disappears to his own cubicle, leaving Stiles on his own. He walks slowly, opting to take the stairs up the two flights instead of the elevator, hoping the time will steady him. It doesn’t really help, and when he finally gets to Derek’s floor, all he can do is hope that no one will be able to tell how badly his legs are shaking. 

Erica Reyes, the only member of Derek’s personal marketing team that Stiles actually knows, smirks when she sees him. There’s something in her eyes that makes him queasy, and he edges past her desk quickly, avoiding eye contact. She just laughs at his unease.

He’s almost relieved when he knocks on Derek’s door, until he hears Derek’s gruff, “Come in,” and the fear rears back with a vengeance. 

Stiles expects almost anything but what he opens the door to see.

The infamous Derek is lounging on the small sofa in his office, two small kittens curled up and sleeping in his arms. The third, an orange one that Stiles named Nemo, is sitting on the back of the couch, playing with Derek’s hair. 

Stiles can’t decide if he wants to coo because of how cute the sight is, or cry because Derek Hale is probably the sexiest man he has ever seen. He has his tie off and the top two buttons of his shirt undone, enough to expose curls of dark hair, he’s looking at the kittens as if they are the most precious thing in the world, and it's killing Stiles. If Stiles’ mouth drops open, he can’t really be blamed for it.

Derek, unaware of Stiles’ inner turmoil, smiles over at him. “Mr. Stilinski, it’s nice to finally meet you. I would stand up to shake your hand, but-. Well, they just fell asleep and I don’t want to disturb them.”

“I-. You found the kittens.” It’s a stupid thing to blurt out, but his brain is a little fried at the moment and those are the only words he can get out.

Expression growing serious, Derek nods. “Yes, I was on my way to meet Finstock when I noticed them in your cubicle.”

“I’m sorry,” he blurts. Derek’s eyes widen at the outburst, and Stiles rushes on to explain. “I was on my way to work when I found them, and I couldn’t just leave them out there. But I was running late already, and this was the only place I could bring them!” As he goes on, Derek’s (magnificent) eyebrows climb higher and higher in astonishment. “I’m so sorry. I’m sure that this goes against some obscure company policy, but I promise that I can get rid of them! I can even go now, if you want me too.”

Derek blinks a few times, gathering his wits again, before speaking. “Mr. Stilinski, I’m not upset that you brought them into the office. They aren’t hurting anyone. I only brought them here because they were trying to escape from their box and I didn't want them getting lost.”

Stiles stares at him. He can’t piece together how the man lounging before him is the same person from everyone’s horror stories. “You’re not going to fire me?”

He didn’t think it was possible for Derek to look more surprised. “What? Fire you? No! I don’t-. You’re not even in my department.”

Nemo, seemingly board with Derek’s hair, starts to make his way daringly across the back of the couch. Feeling more comfortable now that he knows that his job isn’t on the line, Stiles moves further into the office and catches the small cat before he can try to make the jump to the floor. Nemo climbs up his chest instead, purring in contentment.

“I thought they got loose,” Stiles explains, trying to ignore the way Derek watches him. “I was so worried that they would get lost.” He clears his throat, and meets Derek’s gaze. “So thank you, for bringing them here.”

The sentiment makes Derek duck his head, hiding a smile, and oh Gods, he’s a marshmallow. “It was no problem. I-.” He trails off, clears his throat. “Are you planning on keeping all of them?”

He gestures to Stiles to take a seat, which he appreciates. Nemo has been trying to squirm out of his arms, and he doesn't want to drop him. As soon as he’s seated on the chair by the desk, Stiles sets the small kitten on the floor to explore and turns his attention back to Derek.

“As much as I would love to take them all home with me, Nemo is the only one I’m going to keep for myself. I’m planning on finding some friends or something to adopt those two though.” He gestures to the kittens sleeping against Derek. “Then if I can’t find anyone, I guess I’ll take them to a shelter.”

A blush appears on Derek’s cheeks. “Um. I would like to keep them, if you don’t already have some friends who want them.”

Stiles feels his mouth drop open again. “Wait, really?” 

His blush deepens. “I-. Yes. I promise that I’ll be able to take care of them. I’ve wanted to get a cat for awhile, and well-. These two are so sweet, and they seem to like me quite a bit, and-.”

A smile pulls at Stiles’ lips as Derek continues to rattle on about why he would be a good pet owner. Everything that he’s ever heard about Derek Hale is most definitely false. This guy is nothing more than a very attractive marshmallow.

\----------

“I can’t believe I ate that whole burrito,” Scott drones as they step out of the elevator. Since they finished lunch, he hasn’t stopped complaining about how full he is. Stiles stopped paying attention to it well before they even got back to their building. 

It’s been just over a week since everything with the kittens went down, and Stiles can’t get Derek out of his head. He hasn’t seen him since then, but every time he lets his mind wander, kaleidoscope eyes appear to him. Like now, all he can think about is how relaxed Derek was lounging in his office. Stiles can imagine curling up with him there, tucking around his body like the kittens did. It’s honestly very distracting.

“Dude.” Scott punches his shoulder to get his attention. “You seriously zoned out on me. Again.” His nose wrinkles, and then he sighs with his whole body. “Please don’t tell me you were thinking about Derek again. I swear you’re worse than I was with Allison and-.”

They turn into Stiles’ cubical and stop short. Because sitting on his desk, playing with his pens and grinning at them is Laura Hale. Laura Hale, who will be CEO of The Beacon when her mother steps down. Laura Hale, who has a lot of power in the company already. Laura Hale, who just overheard Scott telling Stiles to stop daydreaming about her younger brother. 

Oh Gods, he's dead. 

Scott looks back and forth between them, then takes a step back. “I’ll talk to later, Stiles,” he says, voice quivering only a little before he retreats.

Stiles blinks at Laura for a moment before babbling. “Oh, hey Laura. Laura Hale. Laura future CEO. How’s it, uh-. How’s it going?”

Her laugher is gleeful. “Oh, this is perfect. I assume you’re Stiles Stilinski, correct?” He nods, frantically bobbing his head up and down. Her grin is predatory. “Then you’re the one who responsible for giving my brother those cats?”

“I-. Yes, he took two of these kittens I found a week ago. But-.”

She raises one hand to cut him off. “Which means that you’re the one responsible for making him so happy.” His jaw drops. He can’t help it. 

Laura rises to her feet, long limbs unfolding gracefully until she stands before him. “Derek is a hard one to crack,” she begins, crossing her arms and looking fond. “Since he’s started working here, he’s hardened himself into his role. He’s always taken things too seriously, and I was starting to worry that nothing would get him excited again. And then I went to his office for lunch one day, and found him grinning over at these two cats, laughing as they chase each other around.”

Some of the edge in her expression relaxes back into fond exasperation. “And he wouldn't stop talking about you, about how good your work is, about how he thinks you’re a great employee.”

Stiles colors at the praise. “I-. I don’t even work in his department.” As soon as he says it, he feels like smacking himself in the face. Obviously she knows that he doesn’t work for Derek. It’s her job to know.

“Still, you made an impression. And I’m sure it’s not just because Derek thinks you’re hot.”

_Error: there has been a malfunction. The file named brain has been disconnected from the server._

“W-what-.” Stiles can’t exactly understand.

Cackling at his expression, she reaches out to pat at his shoulder. “You know, it’s not against the company policy for employees to date.” He blinks at her, still trying to understand. “I’m just saying. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a meeting to get to. Derek shouldn’t be too busy now though, and I know he hasn’t eaten yet.” She points at a bag on his desk. “That’s his lunch, if you would be so kind as to take it to him.”

He’s nodding before he can comprehend what’s happening. It makes Laura laugh again, before she pats his cheek. “It was nice to meet you, Stiles. Hopefully we’ll be seeing more of each other very soon.”

Stiles watches her walk away, still feeling off balance. And then he’s scrambling, grabbing the bag and moving to the elevator. He barely hears Scott yell out for him, but he’s too busy thinking about how he might actually have a chance with ~~the man of his dreams~~ Derek.

The elevator ride seems to take forever. When the door finally opens on the right floor, Erica is waiting on the other side.

She actually looks surprised for a moment, but then her eyes catch on the bag he’s carrying, and a sly grin pulls her lips up. “Stilinski,” she murmurs. “Welcome back. I was wondering how long it would take you to wander up here again.”

Not giving him a chance to respond, she climbs in the elevator herself and shoves him out. “Good luck, Stiles” is yelled his way as the elevator closes. 

Heart pounding, Stiles makes the walk to Derek’s office, entering when he hears the familiar call, “Come in!”

Derek is standing with his back to the door, rustling through a filing cabinet and giving Stiles a great view of his ass. It’s distracting enough that Stiles doesn’t even realize he’s talking.

“I thought you got lost,” Derek grumbles without turning around. “When you offered to bring me lunch, Laura, I expected it a little sooner. Some of us have actual work to-oh.” He turns, eyes widening when he sees Stiles instead of his sister. “Stil-. Mr. Stilinski. How can I help you today?”

“I have your lunch,” Stiles squeaks, holding out the bag. “Your sister asked me to drop it off.”

A frown pulls at Derek’s lips even as a blush colors his cheeks. “She didn't talk to you, did she?” Stiles blinks at the pleading edge in his voice. “She asked you to bring that up, and that was it? Right?”

He opens his mouth to respond, but then movement from the couch catches his attention. One of the kittens is jumping around the couch, playing with a blanket draped there. Beside the couch is a large cat tree, and the other kitten is resting there, looking content. 

“You keep them in your office,” Stiles asks, distracted.

Derek’s blush deepens. “Figs doesn’t like being left alone,” he grumbles. “And I wasn’t going to leave his sister behind. Besides, I work late sometimes, and it wouldn’t be fair for them to be alone all the time.”

His heart might actually burst out of his chest. Derek is too much, so cute. It might kill him. 

“I-. Laura might have mentioned that you’ve told her about me,” he says finally, drawing his attention back to the conversation at hand. It makes Derek pale. “And she might have mentioned that it wasn’t just because you think I’m hot.”

“Oh, Gods, I am so sorry. Laura is-. She likes to meddle with stuff she shouldn’t, even here at work and-.”

“It was a mortifying conversation,” Stiles continues, stepping farther into the office, “Because my best friend had been yelling at me for daydreaming about you.”

Little bunny teeth poke appear when Derek’s mouth falls open. It takes him a second before he asks, “Really?”

Stiles shrugs, setting the bag on his desk. “Yeah, really. I’m sure Laura will tell you all about it.”

At that, Derek laughs, head tipping back far enough that Stiles is assaulted with thoughts of marking his skin. 

“So if I asked if you wanted to get dinner later,” Derek trails off.

It makes Stiles grin. “I would ask what time you get off.”

When Derek laughs again and reaches out to grab his hand, Stiles is thankful for kittens, and rainstorms, and meddling sisters. He really loves his job.

**Author's Note:**

> This was written do for Sterek Week day three, for the theme meet-cute.


End file.
